12 Things You Don't Know About Pablo Escobar

If you live in the Americas, you might have heard about Pablo Escobar before. He was one of the most infamous and ruthless drug lords of all time. Born on December 1, 1949, in a poor Colombian farmer's family, Escobar managed to become one of the richest and most influential criminals of his time. He gave sleepless nights to the law enforcement officials of the United States, Colombia, and many other South American countries. Pablo Escobar founded Medellin Cartel in the early 1970s, a drug cartel that made him the wealthiest criminal ever. Read 12 unknown facts about the Cocaine King, Pablo Escobar!

1.Medellin Cartel, The Most Powerful Drug Cartel Ever

Pablo Escobar founded and ran the most powerful drug cartel of all time, According to The Daily Beast, the Colombian drug lord's cartel was making approximately $420 million a week in revenue, shipping 70 to 80 tons of cocaine a month to the United States and other countries. In 1987, Forbes listed Pablo Escobar on its List of World's Billionaires along with Giovanni Agnelli (Fiat), Benetton Family, Kerry Packer, etc. His ill-gotten wealth secured him a spot in Forbes billionaires' list in the subsequent years as well until his death in 1993.

He was the wealthiest criminal in history, with an estimated known net worth of US $30 billion by the early 1990s (equivalent to about $54 billion as of 2015).

He might have helped poor, but when it comes to dealing with enemies, his only choice was murder. Pablo Escobar was responsible for killing more than 3000 people, in which most of the victims were policemen, lawyers, judges, intelligence officers, etc. According to John Jairo Velasquez, the former lead hitman of Medellin Cartel, Pablo Escobar orchestrated the death of nearly 3000 people. John Jairo Velasquez, also known as Popeye, admitted to killing nearly 300 people with his hands. He was released in 2014, and since then, he had given many interviews for TVs and magazines.

Despite being a criminal involved in numerous illegal activities like murder, kidnap, and drug trafficking, Pablo Escobar helped Colombian poor people until his death. He donated a lot of money to churches, provided food to poor, and built parks and football stadiums. He constructed houses for homeless and brought electricity to many remote areas. The people of the Medellin city, especially the poor, admired him for his philanthropic efforts. The locals used to call Pablo Escobar "Robin Hood!" According to Mark Bowden, the author of "Killing Pablo," the Cocaine King wanted people to love him and not treat him like a typical criminal.